The Nation Newspaper

Category: Aviation

  • Lagos airport city construction to start soon

    Construction of the ‘airport city’ otherwise known as ‘Aerotropolis ‘ is expected to begin in the next few weeks at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

    The airport city is part of efforts to expand the MMIA. The deal is being done with the Chinese government to deliver five new international airport terminals in the country.

    The Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr George Uriesi, told The Nation that a timeline for commencement of the project would be set after the Yuletide.

    He said: ”We will start construction on the aerotroplois project in Lagos next year, but we will set the timing during the end of year.”

    He said an alternative power supply for the Airport had been completed with the installation of new power cables, which would address the challenge of epileptic power supply at the terminals.

    ”We have started testing the source of alternative power supply around the airport. We are testing the system, with new cables system to make power supply reliable around the airport.

    “From this week, we will be working on alternative power supply around the airport. We are fixing the facilities and I can assure that at last, the challenge of epileptic power supply will now be a thing of the past at the Lagos Airport. We have fixed the power system,”he said, adding that the old power system had been disabled.

    He said the authority has taken steps to block revenue leakages with its take over of the access toll gate at the Airport, a development

    ”We are just simply becoming a normal airport, collecting our revenue better as we have never done before.

    “We are trying to make a clean break from the past where there was leakage in revenue . We are learning how to fetch water with a bucket and not a basket, as was in the practice in the past.

    “Now we are not giving room for any form of revenue leakage, we have begin to tighten every loose end, we are becoming a more viable and sustainable organisation,” he said.

    On the parlous state of some facilities at the airport, he said: ”We are getting increasingly concerned on some issues about the state of our airport facilities. We are not happy over some gaps that have been noticed around the airport, it is as a result of on going reconstruction.

    “We are also noting the observations and complaints from airport users. I am pained by it. I wish I could share with people what is going on, but, we are going through a lot of obstacles, we are learning from it to improve on further projects.”

    According to him, what is important is that the agency is striving to give airport users the best.

    “To construct an airport while you are operating it will give room for a lot of mishaps, the leakage that people have noticed at the airport have occurred because the engineers are still working on the project. This involves removing some portions of the ceiling, which has exposed all those lapses,” he said.

     

     

     

  • ‘Why NAMA is training technical staff’

    The Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) Nnamdi Udoh has said due to inadequate funds, the training of technical staff would take priority over the other employees.

    The Managing Director, who stated this at the 31st Annual General Meeting of the National Association of Air Traffic Engineers (NAAE) in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, explained that it is mandatory to train and re-train all the NAMA staff, but under the circumstances safety-critical personnel would be considered foremost.

    However, Udoh said such priority “does not mean total neglect of the non-technical staff”.

    “We are going to do our best to train our staff. Because we have limited funds, we can only do our suit within the limit of the available cloth. Consequently, we are prioritising training by addressing technical training mainly. If we train five engineering staff, we will train one from the human resources department. One is safety-critical; the other is management. This is the only way we can cope with the challenge of paucity of funds. That is why we are asking the people who enjoy the luxury of a robust airspace to pay the correct charges,” he said.

    Earlier in his keynote address, Udoh had said that the provision of air navigation services in the country had been saddled with enormous responsibilities in the realisation of aviation safety and security.

    He said safe and secure airspace would not be realised without professionally sound platforms duch as NAAE, National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NATCA) and National Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (NATCA).

    He also appraised the roles and responsibilities of Air Traffic Safety Electronic Personnel (ATSEP), saying they were becoming more challenging in the new era.

    “ATSEP definitely play an extremely critical and pivotal role in the aviation industry and it is obvious that all ATSEP are opportune not only to provide services to flights but also play key developmental roles in the country,” he said.

  • Why air transport growth is slow in Africa, by expert

    The air transport industry in Africa must address the challenge of inadequate skilled and experienced manpower if the aviation industry must contribute significantly to the growth of its gross domestic product (GDP), chairman, Nigerian Aviation Safety Initiative ( NASI), Captain Dung Pam has said.

    Speaking in an interview, the aircraft pilot explained that one of the ways to address the myriads of challenges in the continent is the design of a deliberate policy that would define the respective strategies, timelines and the sustainability of identified soluions to manpower and infrastructure development.

    Pam explained that in the past nine years, Africa’s major obstacle has been the inability of the continent to meet safety oversight functions due to lack of requisite competent manpower.

    He said: “For the past nine years, a major obstacle in Africa’s inability to meet its safety oversight functions is the lack of requisite competent manpower.

    “It is obvious that for the past few years a lot of training has taken place within both the administration and professional cadre of aviation agencies.”

    He, however, hopes the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authroity (NCAA) will strive to retain these personnel by offering realistic prospects for secure and rewarding professional careers in the country.

    “It is evident that Africa will find it challenging to produce the number of development professionals needed to sustain economic growth in the aviation sector without a serious change in educational and labour policies,” he said.

    He explained that a conservative estimate from Boeing last year gave indication that Africa needed to provide an additional 715 pilots and 960 aircraft engineers yearly for the next 20 years to man its aviation sector planned capacity.

    Pam said: “Nigeria’s population is 18 per cent of Africa’s, hence we are expected to provide the appropriate 18 per cent of the manpower needed on the continent. This comes to precisely 128 additional pilots and 172 new engineers every year.

    “Failing to meet this target means Africa will have to mitigate the shortfall by employing expatriates.”

     

  • ‘How to save cost of corporate travel’

    The Managing Director of Quantum Travels Limited,  Michael Otubu has said patronage of travel management companies by corporate organisations could reduce the cost of travel for their personnel.

    He said if corporate organisations use the services of travel management firms, they could save about 30 per cent of the expenditure on travel for their officials annually.

    Otubu said: ”Our plan is to double our market share of over N9 billiontravel expenditure of 2012. Our target is to achieve N15 billion before the end of this year.”

    The huge savings, Otubu said, would accrue through strategic planning services by the travel management companies which engages in wholesale negotiations with airlines , hotels, car rental companies and others in the hospitality chain, to save cost.

    He said the firm controls about eight per cent of the travel expenditure in the country, through ticket sales, but is optimistic to up it to 15 per cent by 2015.

    He said the global partnership that travel management firms enjoy puts them in a vantage position to negotiate ticket purchase for their clients and others who are interested in leisure and corporate travel.

    Otubu said lamented the poor patronage of travel management in the country due to lack of enlightenment.

    He said the role of travel management companies is beyond the services of travel agencies, which only sells tickets on behalf of airlines, but cater for travel needs including advisory consular services.

    He explained that over the last 10 years of its operations, the firm has emerged the largest travel management company in the country in facilitating seamless travel arrangement and business relationships for corporate travellers.

    He spoke of plans to engage foreign carriers and domestic airlines and how to facilitate seamless travel for passengers with the use of best global practices under the network of BCD Travels, which has operations in 98 countries in the world.

    Otubu said his outlook for travel management in Nigeria in the next decade is to advance the frontiers of the business by making travel lass physically interactive with the introduction of online portal for seamless electronic transactions .

    He said: ”Our strategy is to meet the needs of our diverse customers by deploying the best technology to make the travel experience seamless.

    “One of the strategies to achieve this is the introduction of travel advisory and consular services to organisations. .We hope that by next year, the challenge of payment for our services would have  been resolved with the introduction of a payment solution.

    “We have reached an agreement with a Nigerian commercial bank to facilitate this. Our goal is to reach more clients. By doing this, the challenge of how to facilitate payment would have been resolved, which often arise from cash flow processes with our clients and their internal processes.”

    He said the firm plans  to introduce vocational packages where skills would be acquired for corporate travellers  next year as part of its new product offering.

    One of the ways of achieving this is to partner with wholesale providers of services which include airlines, hotels and others, adding that it has been observed that over 30 per cent of travel expenditure for many corporate organisations could be saved if they utilise the services of travel management companies.

    “This is achievable through the partnership approach model. This will arise by cutting down  process costs, which consume a greater bulk of the travel expenditure,”he said.

    He spoke of robust relationship with both foreign and local airlines, which he said the firm is constantly engaging to enable passengers get value for money.

    Otubu said though Quantum Travels has established offices in Lagos, Port Harcourt  and Abuja, it is consolidating its business by looking beyond the meagre commission from ticket sales.

    He said: ”We have robust relationship with all airlines. We are constantly engaging them.

    “Like the practice abroad, we are looking beyond a time when airlines will not pay any commission to travel agents.

    “What we plan to do is to introduce a professional service charge to keep the business afloat.”

    BCD Travel Nigeria is the highest trading Travel Management Company(TMC) in Nigeria at present on the Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) Platform, which shows an impressive growing acceptance of the brand.

    “We will continue to exert our unrelenting effort to always satisfy our clients,” stated Otubu.

  • How to make aviation work, by airline operators

    The Airlines Operators of Nigeria (AON) will partner with the Federal Government to protect the interest of genuine investors in aviation, its Chairman, Captain Wogie Meggison, has said.

    Meggison said the AON has not made its impact felt in the sector in the past few years because rather than consider ways of attracting investment to the highly capital intensive sector, some operators have converted the platform provided by the body to engage in aviation politics and criticism.

    He told The Nation in Lagos, that the time has come to separate active players with valid Air Operators’ Certificates from those merely parading themselves as operators without functional airlines.

    He explained that there is a huge difference between an aircraft owner and an airline operator. ”The time has come for serious investors who have a stake in the sector to continue to direct affairs, rather than allowing people without functional airlines to be speaking on behalf of real players.

    “If such people are the ones speaking on behalf of airline operators, the question that would arise is, what is the scale of their own operations? he queried.

    “It is only when those who have invested serious money in the sector are actively involved in the affairs of the body, that they can engage government on ways of assisting airlines, either in the area of reduction in operational charges, or access to finance for aircraft purchase,” he said, arguing: “If a man that does not currently run an airline is purportedly speaking on behalf of serious operators, it could send the wrong signals.”

    Meggison, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Jed Air, said serious operators must come together to draw a road map for the government on how to improve the lot of domestic carriers.

    He said comments from aircraft owners who do not hold valid Air Operators’ Certificate have distracted serious investors from the industry, expressing that the spate of criticisms by non-operators over some government’s policies meant to deepen the safety process in the industryhave unsettled the industry.

    Meggison said the government may be considering ways of assisting serious operators in the sector, if they are formidable enough to seek a single platform for engagement.

    “ If the government wants to assist serious investors in the sector, it will be important for such operators to be the people rallying behind the association of airlines, and not some people who do not have functional airlines, but are just speaking and criticising government on issues outside their areas of competence, adding that the AON we want to build, is such that will consider ways government could facilitate assistance for airlines for the growth and development of the sector, and not an association, where the key proponents do not own and are not currently running a functional airline.

    He argued that since those who had represented AON were not active operators, they were not the right people to talk about the cost of aviation fuel, operational charges and navigational charges.

    “A situation, in which a man who does not have an airline, does not run one is talking about how government policy affects the aviation industry, people will be tempted to ask, from what perspective is such a person speaking. These are the issues,” he said.

    Captain Meggison was elected as the new chairman of AON for the next two years, last week

    The election, which took place at the Annual General Meeting ( AGM) of the AON, was conducted by the law firm of Banwo&Ighodalo. Also elected as Vice Chairman is the Chief Operating Officer of DANA Air, Yvan Drewinsky.

  • Breaking: Associated Plane crash DNA results released

    Breaking: Associated Plane crash DNA results released

    The Department of Pathology and Forensic, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja is ready with the results, documentation and tagging of the victims of the crashed aircraft conveying the remains of the former governor, Ondo, late Agagu.
    The total number involved in the incident was 16 but 12 needed DNA and it had been done overseas and results ready.

    The Nation gathered that family and relations of the deceased can come forward to claim the remains of their loved ones that were involved in the mishap “as from now”, said an official who prefer anonymity.

  • How effective is aviation regulation?

    How effective is aviation regulation?

    How airworthy was the Embraer 120 aircraft operated by Associated Aviation which crashed killing 14 passengers on board last Thursday ?

    Did the aircraft have a valid insurance cover as affirmed by the mangers of the airline?

    How do we close the gap in documentation on the last date the ill – fated aircraft flew before it crashed?

    Who released and certified the aircraft for that flight?

    These are among the questions agitating the minds of experts and watchers of the aviation sector after last Thursday’s crash of Associated Aviation Embraer 120 aircraft in Lagos.

    The crash appears to have exposed the weakness of aviation regulation in Nigeria. The sad incident happened at a time the industry is recovering from the agonies of the June 3, 2012 crash of Dana Air at Iju/ Ishaga area of Lagos State.

    The discrepancy in the last date of flight of the aircraft as disclosed by the Chief Operating Officer of Associated Aviation , Alhaji Taiwo Raji and officials of the NCAA, has cast doubts on the reliability of documentation of flights in Nigeria.

    While the Associated Aviation chief operating officer gave August 30, this year as the date of the last flight, officials of the regulatory agency said it was August 22.

    Some players in the insurance sector have also raised concerns over the veracity in the claim by the airline that it has a valid insurance cover with SEMA Insurance.

    But, the NCAA Director-General, Captain Folayeke Akinkuotu, has grounded the operations of Associated Aviation.

    It is not clear whether this decision was taken on account of ongoing investigations by the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB).

    Akinkuotu said: “Operation of Associated Airlines has been suspended by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). And let me say it again for the purpose of clarity, all the operations of Associated Airlines have been suspended by NCAA. I say it again with emphasis, all operations; I did not say the certification, all operations.”

    On the allegation that the aircraft may not have adequate insurance cover, Akinkuotu said: ”I am not an expert in insurance, but we have documentations to the effect that SEMA has provided some documentation. I believe that SEMA must be a brokerage firm; a brokerage firm is not the one that insures. But we have some documentation in respect of insurance.

    But, the NCAA has some documents on the insurance of the aircraft.”

    But, players in the industry, have also raised concerns over the airworthiness status of the ill- fated aircraft, which the NCAA apparently has continued to dismiss.

    Akinkuotu said: “Well, it is a matter of documentation and standards. You have to look at what NCAA does as its responsibility and what the operator does as its own responsibility. They have certified engineers; they have certified pilots; they have technical people who within the organisation have certified the aircraft is airworthy and we did not have any information contrary to that. If we had, we would have withdrawn the airworthiness certification on the aircraft.

    “ The continued airworthiness certification of an airplane is largely the responsibility of the operator. There are certified engineers there who are licensed and certified by NCAA who signed that the aircraft was airworthy; the pilot also agreed the aircraft was airworthy and he accepted to fly it; so to that extent, the NCAA cannot say anything to the contrary as we speak.

    “NCAA applies the same standard to the major and fringe airlines. The rules are the same. If you are an AOC holder, you are an AOC holder. It is not a matter of the size of your operations. As a matter of fact, it is better to keep an eye on the smaller operators.”

    The NCAA boss, however, said that the frequent change of ownership of the airline does not have any impact on the safety of the airline.

    He said: “But business can change hands but we at NCAA, our principal business is to maintain the airworthiness of aircraft and the status of an airline.”

    But, many industry watchers are asking the NCAA to explain its role as it affects the maintenance history of the aircraft that crashed, as well as its flight cycle.

    Many experts could not comment on the circumstances leading to the crash because of on going investigation by the AIB.

    But, they have raised concerns over what has happened to Associated Aviation in the last one year when it temporarily stopped its scheduled flights to scale up its operations.

    But, the Chief Pilot of Associated Aviation Captain Mohammed Gbadamosi said the aircraft maintenace was intact before the crash.

  • BA offers special fares to UK, US, Europe

    British Airways has announced special price discounts across all of its cabins for its Nigerian customers, Known as the Independence Anniversary Special.

    According to the airline, the offer presents the customers with the opportunity to travel at special discount rates to London, the United Kingdom, and selected destinations in Europe and the United States from Lagos and Abuja.

    According to officials of the airline, the offer will extend to the end of this month.

    Under the new arrangement, customers travelling to different destinations from Lagos and Abuja in all its cabins, can now experience the unparallel service and luxurious surroundings of British Airways for less with the Independence special offer.

    British Airways’ Country Manager for West Africa, Kola Olayinka, said with the Independence Anniversary Special, customers in World Traveller class can now travel direct from Lagos, or Abuja to London, the UK and select European destinations from as low as $353.

    For those travelling to the same destination in the World Traveller Plus, the fare goes for $753, while fares for Club World and First Class cabins start from as low as $2,153 and $5,353.

     

     

     

    Giving further details of the offer, Olayinka said travelling to US cities is now also cheaper on British Airways, with new fares of $653 in World Traveller, $1,453 for World Traveller Plus, $2,753 for Club World and $6,453 for First on select North American destinations, including US and Canadian cities.

    “We are constantly looking for new ways to make our customers happy and satisfied, and also give value to our clientele. The fare is exclusive of all surcharges and taxes, and the selling is between February 1 and February 28, while outbound travel period run from February 1 to June 14, this year,” she pointed out.

    He said the offer has once again reiterated the fact that British Airways’ commitment to offering more value for money for its teeming Nigerian customers, and shows how much the airline values its Nigerian customers.

    “We are always looking for new ways to make our customers happy and satisfied, and also give them value, and the Independence anniversary provides us with such a unique opportunity,” he said. He promised that the airline will continue to offer its Nigerian customers great fares, and a choice of services and onboard products, adding that all fares quoted are exclusive of all surcharges and taxes.

     

  • Nigeria re-elected member of ICAO’s Council

    Nigeria has been re-elected to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Council. Nigeria won with 149 out of 172 votes cast, representing 86 per cent of the total votes cast at the 38th Assembly of the organisation in Montreal, Canada.

    The majority vote garnered by Nigeria according to the General Manager,Corporate Communication, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Yakubu Dati, is indicative of how highly Nigeria is regarded in the commity of world air transport sector.

    He said it is such high regard that will provide a strong platform for the election of the Nigerian representative in ICAO, Dr Olumuyiwa Babatunde Aliu who will be standing for election for the President of ICAO Council on October 28.

    Nigeria’s presence, Dati said, was strongly felt as the Federal Government sent a delegation led by the Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah.

    Aliu’s quest received full support from the Federal Government and Nigerians, both at home and in Diaspora as the Ms Oduah has continued to support Aliu who has built invaluable goodwill among ICAO member countries’ representatives.

    Princess Oduah last Thursday addressed the Assembly, reinforcing the commitment of the Nigerian government to meet all ICAO standards and requirements in safety, security, aerodrome facility and regulation, giving details of how far Nigeria has gone in actualising some of these objectives, including the efforts in infrastructural renewal at the nation’s airports.

    She assured that all the goals set out would be accomplished in the nation’s aviation sector within the framework of the transformation agenda of the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.

    The media coordinator of the aviation agencies and the General Manager, Corporate Communication of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Yakubu Dati, observed that the massive support for Nigeria as membership of ICAO Council by the international aviation community is an acknowledgement of the tremendous efforts the present administration is making to improve the sector.

    “Nigeria’s election also confirms therecognition of the increasing strength of Nigerian aviation industry and the m inister’s campaign for his election as President of ICAO Council showed that our country is making significant progress to take its rightful position as West African hub,” Dati said.

    The Minister also paid a courtesy call on the out-going President of the Council in his office as part of the strategy to secure his continuous support for Nigeria and also hosted several bilateral meetings with delegates of United States, the European Union and several others.

    Accompanied by Director Generals and CEOs of Nigerian aviation parastatals, the Minister garnered support and pledges from many countries and regional groups, as well as international aviation stakeholders, such as Airport Council International (ACI), International Air Transport Association (IATA).

    There was also a robust exchange of ideas on initiatives and programmes for the development of the aviation industry in Nigeria.

    Dati said the campaign for Aliu to become the President of ICAO Council will be sustained until the election scheduled forOctober 28, 2013.

    The 36 members of the ICAO Council would constitute the Electoral College for the election of the President of the Council.

    “So far, based on the responses from member states, we are optimistic that Dr. Aliu will ultimately emerge as the next President of ICAO Council, but we are not relenting on our efforts,” said Oduah.

    Nigeria joined ICAO in 1960 and was elected into the Council of ICAO in 1962 as a Part II member State and the country has since remained on the Council and has continued to promote the interest of Nigeria and Africa on the Council as well as contribute to the sustainable development and growth of civil aviation in the region.

    Dati remarked that the ultimate election of Dr. Aliu as President of ICAO Council will be historic.

    “Nigeria will be the first African country to produce the President of ICAO Council. Through this position, Nigeria can exert influence in international aviation community for the benefit of the country’s aviation industry and the national economy.”

     

  • 11 things about Embraer 120 Brasilia

    11 things about Embraer 120 Brasilia

    Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia is a twin-turboprop commuter airliner. It is produced by Embraer of Brazil. This commuter airliner yesterday crashed in Lagos while conveying the remains of the former Governor of Ondo State, Dr Olusegun Agagu, his son Feyi and 26 persons to Akure, Ondo State. It was reported to have crashed after two minutes of take-off.

    Below are 11 things you should know about Embraer 120 aircraft:
    – Amount varies between: 8,500,000 – 11,000,000 USD (2013)
    – Carrying Capacity: 30 passengers
    – Length:  65ft 7 1/2 in
    – Maximum speed: 608 km/h
    – Manufactured by Embraer in Brazil
    – First ever flight: 1983
    – The name given to the first set of airliner was: EMB-120 Araguaia
    – The name EMB-120 Araguaia was changed in 1979
    – Its current name since 1979 is: EMB-120 Brasillia
    – Also produced with EMB-120 Brasillia were: EMB-123-Tapajós,EMB-121
    Xingu,EMB-121
    -Since September 19, 1986, EMB-120 Brasilia has been involved in 16 accidents